Texas | December 4, 2017

Wind Power Blows Past Coal as Second Largest Energy Source

A 155-megawatt wind farm in West Texas, which came online in November 2017, helped wind power surpass coal as Texas’ second-largest energy source. Still in first place was natural gas, according to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). ERCOT oversees 90% of the state’s grid.

A report issued by ERCOT noted that, while the grid still gets most of its power from a combination of natural gas and coal, wind-powered generation accounts for 15% of the power mix, up from 2% a decade ago.

Dallas-based Vistra Energy’s plan is to retire three of its coal-fired plants, which will further boost the importance of wind-powered electricity, according to Joshua Rhodes with University of Texas’ Energy Institute in Austin. The next step is for Texas wind farms to generate more power than the coal plants, he added.

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Mark El-Rayes is an award winning designer and photographer from Beirut, Lebanon. El-Rayes has over 15 years in the design industry, 5 years of which he served as a Mass Communication Specialist in the United States Navy at Naval Air Station North Island, Navy Public Affairs Support Element - West (NPASE). El-Rayes is a full-stack developer, seo specialist, photographer, and artist.

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